The Priory Church of St BartholomewtheGreat Smithfield by George Worley

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Title: Bell's Cathedrals: The Priory Church of St. Bartholomew-the-Great, Smithfield
A Short History of the Foundation and a Description of the
Fabric and also of the Church of St. Bartholomew-the-Less

Author: George Worley

Release Date: May 17, 2007 [EBook #21511]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1

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THE INTERIOR FROM THE ORGAN GALLERY.

THE PRIORY CHURCH OF ST. BARTHOLOMEW-THE-

GREAT,

SMITHFIELD

A SHORT HISTORY OF THE FOUNDATION

AND A DESCRIPTION OF THE FABRIC

AND ALSO OF THE CHURCH OF
ST. BARTHOLOMEW-THE-LESS

BY

GEORGE WORLEY

AUTHOR OF "SOUTHWARK CATHEDRAL," "THE TEMPLE CHURCH," ETC.

WITH XLII

Priory Arms

ILLUSTRATIONS

LONDON GEORGE BELL AND SONS 1908

CHISWICK PRESS: CHARLES WHITTINGHAM AND CO.

TOOKS COURT, CHANCERY LANE, LONDON.

PREFACE

In gathering material for this handbook I have received valuable help from several friends, whose kindness calls for grateful recognition. My thanks

are due, in the first place, to the Rev. W. F. G. Sandwith, Rector of St. Bartholomew-the-Great, and the lay custodians of the church, for the
facilities which have allowed me to examine the building in all its parts, and for the readiness with which they have given information, not accessible
elsewhere, on various points of its history and architecture. In this matter, besides more personal obligations, I feel that I owe much, in common with
many others, to Mr. E. A. Webb, the active member of the Restoration Committee, for the suggestive data of his open lectures, and for the
interesting expositions of the fabric by which he has always supplemented them. Others to whom I am indebted are Dom Henry Norbert Birt,
O.S.B., of Downside Abbey, and Mr. Charles W. F. Goss, Librarian to the Bishopsgate Institute, for their skilful guidance in the literature of the
subject; Mr. F. C. Eeles, Secretary to the Alcuin Club, for the Elizabethan Inventory and account of the Mediaeval Bells; and Messrs. Wm. Hill and
Son, the famous builders, for particulars of the organ.

For the illustration of the book, Mr. A. Russell Baker has kindly contributed a selection from his rare set of old engravings, before presenting the

whole to St. Bartholomew's Hospital.

The photographic views of the church and monuments, as seen at the present day, were taken by Mr. Edgar Scamell, of 120, Crouch Hill; and

the seal-impressions by Mr. A. P. Ready, the British Museum artist. Finally, Sir Aston Webb, R.A., has to be thanked for the ground-plans of the
church and monastic buildings; and Mr. G. H. Smith for the plan and dimensions of St. Bartholomew-the-Less.

A list of books and papers is appended for the benefit of students anxious for more detailed information than could be included here.

G. W.

June, 1908

A SELECTION OF WORKS ON ST. BARTHOLOMEW-THE-GREAT

"The Book of the Foundation of St. Bartholomew's Church in London, sometime belonging to the Priory of the same in West

Smithfield." Edited from the original manuscript, with an Introduction and Notes by Norman Moore, M.D. 1885.

"The Charter of King Henry I to St. Bartholomew's Priory, addressed to the Archbishop of Canterbury and to Gilbert the

Universal, Bishop of London, in the year 1133." Edited with Notes, from the copy in the Record Office, by Norman
Moore, M.D. 1891.

"Rahere's Charter of 1137." Translated, with Explanatory Notes, by Norman Moore, M.D. 1904.

"The Ordinance of Richard de Ely, Bishop of London, as to St. Bartholomew's Priory in West Smithfield, witnessed by Henry

Fitzailwin, First Mayor of London, in the year 1198." Edited from the original document by Norman Moore, M.D.
1886.

Dugdale's "Monasticon Anglicanum" (edit. Bandinel, Caley, and Sir Henry Ellis) is indispensable to the student. The sixth volume

(p. 291 sqq.) contains an account of the Smithfield Foundation, and (p. 37 sqq.) the Rule for Austin Canons. For the
latter the reader will do well to consult also R. Duellius' "Antiqua Statuta Canonicorum S. Augustini metrice cum
glossulis optimis," and "Regula Canonicorum Regularium per Hugonem de S. Victore Commentario declarata."

For illustrative matter during the Tudor period reference may be made to "The Elizabethan Religious Settlement," by Dom Henry

Norbert Birt, O.S.B., 1907; the Rev. C. F. Raymund Palmer's "Articles, chiefly on the Friars Preachers of England,
reprinted from archaeological journals, 1878-85"; and "Obituary Notices of the Friars Preachers or Dominicans of the
English Province." 1884.

The literary work of Fr. Perrin (the Marian Prior) is described in Charles Dodd's "Church History of England" (1727 edition), and

Pit's "De Illust. Scriptoribus Angliae."

Besides the invaluable "Historia Anglorum" of Matthew Paris (ed. Sir F. Madden), and Stow's "Survey of London" (ed. John

Strype), the following books may be found useful:

"Repertorium, or History of the Diocese of London." Richard Newcourt. 1708.

"New View of London." Edward Hatton. 1708.

"New Remarks of London: by the Company of Parish Clerks." 1732.

"London and its Environs described." R. and J. Dodsley. 1761.

"History of London." Win. Maitland. (Ed. Entick, 1772.)

"Londinium Redivivum." J. P. Malcolm. 1803.

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vi

vii

viii

"Londina Illustrata." Robert Wilkinson. 1819.

"The Churches of London." G. Godwin and J. Britton. 1839.

"Memories of Bartholomew Fair." H. Morley. 1859.

The progress of the modern work at the church has been announced from time to time in the circulars issued by the Restoration Committee, the

substance of which is incorporated in the text, where also the other authorities consulted by the present writer are referred to.

CONTENTS

PAGE

Preface
v

List of Works of Reference
vii

List of Illustrations
xi

Chapter I. History of the Foundation
3

II. Exterior of the Church
25

III. Interior of the Church
33

IV. St. Bartholomew-the-Less and the Hospital
63

AppendixI. The Priory Seals
73

II. The Priors and Rectors
77

III. Inventory of Vestments, etc.
79

IV. The Organ
80

Index
83

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

PAGE

Interior of the Church from the Organ Gallery
Frontispiece

The Priory Arms
Title-page

Interior of the Church from the East (1805)
2

North Side of the Choir from the Triforium
9

Interior of the Choir (1822)
11

Plan of the Monastic Buildings at the Dissolution
15

The Choir Before Restoration
19

The Priory Church from the West
24

The Priory Church from the West (1810)
25

The North Porch
29

View of the Crossing from the Triforium
32

South Aisle From the West—showing Early English Shafts
34

North Transept and Screen
36

North Transept from the South
37

The Font and Freshwater Monument
41

Interior From the East—showing Prior Bolton's Gallery
42

The Founder's Tomb
45

The Founder's Tomb, showing the original extent of arcaded work
46

The Chamberlayne Monument
48

The Smalpace Monument
49

The Ambulatory and Entrance To the Lady Chapel
51

The Mildmay Monument
53

The Lady Chapel
56

The Crypt
57

The Remaining Bays of the Cloister
59

St. Bartholomew-the-Less and the Hospital Gate
62

Interior of St. Bartholomew-the-Less
65

Brass of William and Alice Markeby
67

Ancient Sculptured Tablets
68

Seals of the Convent and Hospital (eleven examples)
73-76

Plan of St. Bartholomew-the-Less
71

Plan of St. Bartholomew-the-Great (existing Church)
at End

INTERIOR OF THE CHURCH, FROM THE EAST

From a print of 1805.

ix

xi

Table of

ST. BARTHOLOMEW-THE-GREAT

CHAPTER I

HISTORY

The spring and fountain-head of our information about the Priory of St. Bartholomew-the-Great is an account of the foundation, interwoven with

the life and miracles of Rahere, the founder, which was written in Latin by one of the Canons soon after Rahere's death in the reign of Henry II. An
illuminated copy of this work, made at the end of the fourteenth century, is preserved in the British Museum, with an English translation, which forms

the groundwork of all subsequent histories.[1]

Allowing for a few contradictory dates and statements in this precious document, and for the occasional flights of a pious imagination in the

biographer or his subject, we arrive at the following historical basis: Rahere was a man of humble origin, who had found his way to the Court of
Henry I, where he won favour by his agreeable manners and witty conversation, rendered piquant, as it appears, by a certain flavouring of
licentiousness, and took a prominent part in arranging the music, plays, and other entertainments in which the King and his courtiers delighted during

the first part of the reign.[2]

In the year 1120 a total change was wrought in Henry's character by the loss of his only legitimate son in the wreck of the "White Ship," on its

voyage from Normandy to England, after which the King is said never to have smiled again. The event naturally cast a gloom over the Court;
frivolities were abandoned, and religious devotion, either genuine or assumed in polite acquiescence with the royal humour, took the place of the
amusements which had hitherto held sway. In one case, at least, the spirit of reformation was at work in good earnest. Rahere, repenting of his
wasted life, thereupon started on a pilgrimage to Rome, to do penance for his sins on the ground hallowed by the martyrdom of St. Paul, some three
miles from the city. The spot known as the Three Fountains, now rendered more or less sanitary by the free planting of eucalyptus, was then and
long afterwards particularly unhealthy, and while there Rahere was attacked by malarial fever. In his distress he made a vow that, if he were spared,
he would establish a hospital for the poor, as a thank-offering, on his return to England.

His prayer was granted, but his recovery was slow. During his convalescence he had a vision, or dream, in which he thought a winged monster

had seized him in its claws, and was about to drop him into a bottomless pit, when a majestic form came to his rescue, and thus addressed him: "I am
Bartholomew, the Apostle of Jesus Christ, that come to succour thee in thine anguish, and to open to thee the secret mysteries of heaven. Know me
truly, by the will and commandment of the Holy Trinity, and the common favour of the celestial court and council, to have chosen a place in the
suburbs of London, at Smithfield, where in my name thou shall found a church. This spiritual house Almighty God shall inhabit, and hallow it, and

glorify it. Wherefore doubt thou nought; only give thy diligence, and my part shall be to provide necessaries, direct, build, and end this work."[3]

Rahere at once promised compliance, and, as soon as he got back to London, first obtained the King's consent, and then, "nothing omitting of care

and diligence, two works of piety began, one for the vow that he had made, the other as to him by precept was enjoined."[4]

The suburb of Smithfield (Smoothfield) is said to have already occurred to Edward the Confessor as a suitable place for a church on the outskirts

of London, possibly as affording a similar area, in its level and marshy surface, to that chosen for his Abbey at Westminster. The greater part of it
was, indeed, covered by water, the one dry spot (known as "The Elms") being reserved for public executions, which continued to take place there
till some centuries later. The eastern portion of this waste land was granted by Henry I, through the agency of Richard de Belmeis, Bishop of

London; and it was here that, in the year 1123, Rahere began building.[5]

In a marvellously short time the funds were forthcoming, and his double object was achieved in the erection of the Hospital, with the Church at a

little distance, the whole being dedicated by the same friendly bishop to St. Bartholomew the Apostle, in fulfilment of Rahere's vow and the Saint's
instructions.

Rahere is said to have been assisted in his architectural work by Alfune, who had founded St. Giles's Church, Cripplegate, in the year 1090; and

there is a story to the effect that three noble travellers, or merchants, from Byzantium were present at the foundation, when they foretold its future
greatness, and were consulted by Rahere as to the design and character of the building while his plans were under consideration.

On the southern side of the church the group of buildings gradually arose which constituted the Priory, of which the founder, having devoted

himself to the monastic life, of course became the first Prior; and here he spent the rest of his days with thirteen companions—the sub-prior and
twelve subordinates—all living under the Rule of the Canons Regular of St. Augustine. The number was afterwards brought up to thirty-five by

Thomas of St. Osyth, the second Prior (1144-1174), who made a corresponding addition to the premises.[6]

In 1133, when the buildings were fairly advanced, and the value of Rahere's work had got to be recognized, a charter of privileges was granted

by Henry I to the Prior and Canons. Commencing with an invocation of the Holy Trinity, it was addressed to the Archbishop of Canterbury and the
Bishop of London, with a greeting to all the King's faithful subjects, especially the citizens of London. Its comprehensive immunities may be inferred
from the opening paragraph:

Know ye that I have granted, and have by this my charter confirmed, to the Church of St. Bartholomew of London, and to
Rahere the Prior, and to the Canons Regular, in the same church serving God, and to the poor of the Hospital of the same
church, that they be free from all earthly servitude, and all earthly power and subjection, except episcopal customs, to wit, only
consecration of the church, baptism, and ordination of clergy; and that as any church in all England is free, so this church be
free, and all lands to it appertaining, which it now has, or which Rahere the Prior, or the Canons, may be able reasonably to
acquire, whether by purchase or by gift. And it shall have socc and sac, and thol and theme, and infogheneteof; and all liberties
and free customs and acquittances in all things which belong to the same church in wood and in plain, in meadows and

Table of
Contents

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pastures, in waters and mills, in ways and paths, in pools and vineyards, and marshes and fisheries, and in all places now and
for ever.[7]

Another paragraph may be worth quoting, as it expressly includes Bartholomew Fair among the privileges conveyed, though it is clear from the

terms of the instrument that a fair had previously been held in the open space at Smithfield on the Saint's anniversary. Even before the accession of
Henry I there had been a market on the spot, known as "the King's Market" when the ground was allotted to Rahere. (Vide "Vetusta Monumenta,"
vol. ii.)

I grant also my firm peace to all persons coming to and returning from the fair which is wont to be celebrated in that place at
the Feast of St. Bartholomew; and I forbid any one of the royal officials to send to implead any one, or without the consent of
the Canons on those three days—to wit, the eve of the feast, the feast itself, and the day following—to demand customary
dues from them.

The observance was afterwards extended to a double octave of fourteen days, and included all kinds of shows and entertainments, theatrical,

conjuring, and acrobatic performances, in addition to the traffic in cloth-stuffs, horses and cattle, which gave the fair its commercial importance. The
stalls, or booths, in which the portable goods were exposed for sale, were held within the monastery walls, the gates of which were locked at night,

and a watch kept over the enclosure.[8]

Rahere died on 20th September, 1144, and was buried in the church, where his tomb occupies the usual place for Founders on the north side of

the sanctuary, surrounded by his magnificent Norman work in the choir, with the ambulatory beyond it, and extending upwards to the arcading of the
triforium. The eastern part of the clerestory is a modern reproduction of that which superseded Rahere's; but, with this exception, the interior of the
choir was probably much the same originally as it is (restored) to-day.

There was, however, a central tower, and, if the design on the twelfth-century Priory seal is to be trusted, a high circular turret at each end of the

exterior.[9]

Thomas of St. Osyth, the second Prior (d. 1174), erected the transepts and the easternmost bays of the nave, all of which bear signs of the

architectural transition. The nave was probably completed during the next half-century, in the Early-English (then superseding the heavier Norman)
style, as may be inferred from the surviving western gateway, and the mutilated columns which remain within the building at the western end.

THE NORTH SIDE OF THE CHOIR FROM THE TRIFORIUM

Perpendicular work was introduced early in the fifteenth century, when Roger de Walden, Bishop of London (1405-1406), built a chantry-chapel

to the north-east of the choir, and inserted a new clerestory, in the then fashionable style, in place of the original. He also made a considerable
alteration in the chancel by substituting a square east-end for the circular apse, part of which was taken down and used as building material for the
innovation. But de Walden's work was cut short by his death, when he had scarcely held the See of London for two years, and was buried in his
Chapel at St. Bartholomew's, instead of in the Cathedral Church like most of his predecessors.

The Lady Chapel, with the crypt beneath it, dates from about 1410, when also the central tower was probably rebuilt, and decorative additions

were made to the Founder's tomb, in the shape of a canopy and panelling. In the first part of the next century Prior Bolton (1505-32) inserted the
Oriel window on the southern side of the choir-triforium and the doorway in the south ambulatory, both of which bear his sculptured rebus—a bolt,
or arrow, driven through a tun. In 1539 his successor, Robert Fuller, the last of the Augustinian Priors, surrendered the entire property to Henry
VIII, in compliance with the Act of Dissolution, its value having been already ascertained in the twenty-sixth year of the King's reign. The exact
figures are given by Dugdale as follows:

Summa totalis hujus monasterii. £773 0s. 1¾d.

"
"
reprisarum
£79 10s. 3½d.

————————————————

Et remanet clare £693 9s. 10¼d.

INTERIOR OF THE CHOIR

From a print of 1822

For many years before the dissolution of the monasteries the system on which they rested had been gradually undermined by the spread of the

Reformation, accompanied by a growing conviction that the religious communities had not only outlived their usefulness, and to a great extent
departed from the high standard of their founders, but that their enormous wealth had given them an influence far beyond that of any other institution,
or combination of institutions, in the kingdom, and brought them into formidable rivalry with the State itself—the more dangerous in proportion to
their devoted adherence to the Papacy, with which the State was in collision. By whatever unworthy motives Henry VIII may have been governed in
aiming at the monastic property, he was therefore able to bring forward many political considerations, which coincided with those arising out of
religious doctrines, to make his measures intelligible to his people, and consequently easy to himself. Among the various plausible reasons which
were urged against the continued existence of the conventual houses, one of the most likely to appeal to the practical sense of the multitude was the
misuse of the resources with which they had been endowed. While it was admitted that in their earlier days they had been extremely useful in
mitigating distress among the poor, it was now argued that their indiscriminate charities were doing more harm than good, and that the changed
economic conditions of the sixteenth century called for a corresponding change in the distribution of relief, to save the country from being overrun by
undeserving mendicants, amongst whom some of the religious Orders were themselves to be reckoned. It does not appear that any part of this
argument held good against the Augustinian Canons, or that the more serious moral charges brought against the smaller communities were at all
applicable to their case, which was rather one of involvement in a common ruin than the result of any specific accusation. It is true there are instances
of laxity at individual houses, showing a too easy discipline where they occurred, but there is nothing sufficiently extensive or important to

compromise the Order as a whole, or materially damage its character in the eyes of the impartial modern student.[10]

It might have been expected that some immunity from the wholesale spoliation which followed the Act would have been granted to Rahere's

foundation, in view of his special provision for the poor in the hospital which was an integral part of it. The hospital has indeed been allowed to
survive as a separate institution; but the whole of the strictly monastic buildings were doomed, the nave of the church being at once pulled down, and

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the choir only preserved for the use of the parish. With this reservation, the site of the Priory and the buildings upon it, including the Lady Chapel,
were sold in 1546 to Sir Richard Rich, Knight (Attorney General), for the consideration of £1,064 11s. 3d., and the property has remained in the
hands of his descendants till quite recent years. The possession was, however, interrupted by Queen Mary, who introduced the Dominican Order of
Black Friars into the Convent. They had started rebuilding the nave when the accession of Elizabeth meant a return to the policy of her father, the
expulsion of the friars, and the restitution of the Priory estate to Richard (then Lord) Rich and his heirs "in free socage," by a renewal of the previous

grant.[11]

Some idea of the strong ecclesiastical influence broken up at the Dissolution may be gathered from a glance at any old map of London, showing

the numerous religious foundations by which the Priory was then surrounded, now for the most part swept away, or only surviving here and there in
institutions which retain the ancient names under modern conditions. Immediately to the north lay the Carthusian monastery, familiarly known as the
Charterhouse. On the north-west was the Priory of St. John-of-Jerusalem, founded by the Knights Hospitallers. The Franciscan Convent of the
Grey Friars extended along the southern boundary of St. Bartholomew's, between the Priory walls and St. Paul's Cathedral. To the south-west, near
the Thames, there was the monastery of the Carmelites, or White Friars, with the church and houses of the Knights Templars beyond it. Within the
City, to the east, were the great establishments of the Austin Friars and St. Helen's nunnery, while east and west the churches spread—many of
monastic origin—culminating in two of the most important buildings in Europe, the Tower of London and the palace of Westminster, each with its
ecclesiastical dependencies, the whole dominated by the mediaeval spirit about to be dispelled, for good or evil, by the great movements of the
Renaissance and Reformation.

A conjectural restoration of the Priory buildings, as they stood in Prior Bolton's time, based on the records available in 1893, and the architectural

fragments which then remained, shows them to have been bounded on the northern side by the Church, which extended from the Lady Chapel at its
eastern extremity to somewhere near the line indicated by the small archway now leading from the public square into the churchyard on the west.
This churchyard covers the ground formerly occupied by the nave, a mutilated portion of which remains within the building, attached to the lower
stage of the central tower. It seems clear that the choir once extended over the tower-space, and was separated from the nave by a screen, with a
parish-altar on its western side for public worship, while the chancel was reserved for the monastic services, with a raised presbytery for the high
altar at its eastern end—a threefold division providing for the ancient ritual arrangement.

In the ambulatory on the northern side of the choir there were apparently three chapels, besides Bishop Walden's chantry, which was the

easternmost of the series, and is supposed to have had a semicircular apse. There was a similar, but rather smaller, chapel opposite to it on the south
side, and between it and the south transept a sacristy, erected about 1350.

Outside the Lady Chapel lay the cemetery of the Canons, on the favourite (south) side for burials. The cloister formed a large quadrangle attached

to the south aisle. The Prior's residence was probably on the western side of the quadrangle, and on the south there was a range of buildings
comprising the refectory, buttery, and kitchen, with the Close beyond them.

Opening into the cloister on the east was the Chapter House, an oblong structure, adjoining which, on the south, was the dormitory, overlooking

the Mulberry Gardens on the east, and the Close on its western side.[12]

PLAN, PARTLY CONJECTURAL, OF THE MONASTIC BUILDINGS AT THE DISSOLUTION

The work of demolition commenced immediately after the transfer of the property to Henry VIII, when the nave was destroyed; and as soon as

Sir Richard Rich came into possession, he started pulling down the buildings for the sake of the materials, which were used in the erection of new
houses where the old had formerly stood, as well as on the gardens and orchards around them. By the time of Queen Elizabeth the district had
become a favourite residential quarter for great people, who gradually disappeared with the growth of London, and the migration of gentry
westwards, when the houses vacated in Smithfield were let off in tenements to the same sort of poor people who now share the neighbourhood with
merchants and shopkeepers.

During Elizabeth's reign the church had been allowed to get into a very dilapidated state, and that it was in some danger of total destruction

appears from a letter written by Edmund Grindal in 1563, while he was Bishop of London, to Sir William Cecil, proposing to take the lead from the
roof, and transfer it to St. Paul's Cathedral:

St. Bartholomew's Churche, adjoining to my L. Rich's house, is in decaye, and so increaseth dailye. It hath an heavie coate of
lead, wch wolde doe a verie goode service for the Mother Churche of Powles. I have obtayned my L. Rich's goode wishes,
and if I coulde obteyne my L. Chiefe Justice of the K. Benche and Sir Walter Mildmaye's assente, I wolde not doubte to have
the assente also of the whole parishe, that ye leade might goe to the coveringe of Powles.... Now remayneth only this scruple
—How shall the parisshe be providett of a churche? That is thus answered: There is an house adjoininge, wch was the
Fratrie, as they termed it, a very fayre and a large house, and indeed al-readye: if it were purged, it lacketh nothinge but the
name of a churche; is well buylded of free stone, garnished inwarde aboute with marble pyllers, large windowes, etc. I assure
you, without partialitie, if it were roofed up, it were farre more beautiful and conveniente than the other. Yt is provided with
goode sclate. If we mighte have the leade, we wolde compownde with my L. Rich for convertinge the said Fratrie to a
Churche, and wee wylle also supplye all imperfections of the same, and not desire the p'isshe to remove tylle the other be
meete and conveniente to goe to.[13]

Lord Rich thought favourably of the proposal; but that fears were entertained elsewhere would seem probable from a second letter, in which

Grindal writes as follows:

For S. Bartholomewes—I meane not to pulle it downe, but to change it for a Churche more conveniente ... unlesse some
strange opinion shulde arise that prayer were more acceptable under leade than under sclate.

The long period of neglect and desecration which follows is rather to be inferred from the condition of the buildings in the early part of the

nineteenth century than from any actual records respecting them. What that condition was in 1809 is described in two letters which appeared in "The
Gentleman's Magazine" for March and April in that year. They were written in a spirit of indignation at the behaviour of "a powerful junto" which had
been formed in the parish to sweep the whole structure away, church included, on the pretext that part of the choir was in danger of tumbling down.
It had, however, been saved by the exertions and judicious repairs of Mr. Hardwick, to whom the writer pays a just compliment for his timely action
against the particular committee. He then goes on with a lamentable picture of what met his eyes on a "recent survey" of the Priory, which he had

previously examined in 1791, when it was pretty much in the same state.[14] The Lady Chapel was still in existence, but wholly filled up with modern

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tenements; the north transept was more or less destroyed, and the arch bricked up to reduce that side of the church to a level, while the south
transept—a ruin without a roof—was walled off from the church, and used as a burial-ground. The eastern side of the cloister was all that remained
of the quadrangle, and was turned to account as a "comfortable eight-stall stable" for horses. The site of the north cloister was occupied by a
blacksmith's forge, a public house, and certain private offices; the south and west being covered with store-rooms and coach-houses. Of the
Chapter House the remaining walls were "no higher than a dado," and under them the timber was stored after treatment in the sawpit of the
enclosure. The dormitory to the south of the Chapter House had been demolished, and the crypt beneath it bricked off into divisions for stores, with
a common thoroughfare open between them. It may here be mentioned that a close examination of the ground has shown that there was formerly the
usual "slype," or open pathway, running from the cloister-garth, between the south transept and the Chapter House, to the canons' cemetery on the
southern side of the Lady Chapel.

The building against the south wall of the choir (probably the sacristy, though called a chapel) is described as a magnificent structure, of about the

time of Edward III, with windows on the eastern and southern sides, and a grand arch (then latticed up) which formerly connected it with the south
transept. It was being used as a store-room for hops. The chapel to the east of this was destroyed in its upper part, and the windows had lost their
arched heads, though the columns and architraves to the jambs remained, showing some very delicate and beautiful work, which was also
remarkably fine in the dado mouldings. The ceiling of the church—the wreck of the Tudor open-worked timber roof—had been "pared down to a
common pediment covering," supported on the heads of cherubim as corbels. The Doric altar-piece is contemptuously referred to as "a painted

theatrical scene of architecture."[15]

While the subordinate buildings were dropping into ruin, the church, besides having suffered from fire and neglect, had been disfigured by a long

series of repairs and embellishments, the character of which may be inferred from the glaring instances pointed out in the letters just quoted. The
other alterations made in the interior may be briefly summarized as follows: The level of the floor was raised by a thick deposit of earth; the walls
were enveloped in whitewash, to the concealment of the ancient mural paintings and certain delicate sculptured ornament; and high pews were
erected, which reached almost to the capitals of the piers. The openings of the triforium were bricked up—in some cases entirely obliterated—and at
the east end, above the altar-piece just mentioned, there rose a brick wall, pierced with two ugly round-headed windows, filled with square panes of
glass, and destitute of mullions and tracery. The space between the termination thus formed and the original apse went by the name of "Purgatory,"

as a receptacle for human bones, some thousands of which were found to have accumulated when it was cleared out in 1836.[16]

THE CHOIR BEFORE RESTORATION, SHOWING THE FACTORY FLOOR EXTENDING OVER THE APSE AND

SUPPORTED BY TWO IRON COLUMNS

The secularization of this extreme eastern part of the church is traced to the first purchaser from the Government, who held that the sanctuary was

bounded by the straight wall which there ran across it. A more modern consequence than that just mentioned was the intrusion into the triforium of a
Nonconformist school, which was held there during the eighteenth century, in connection with a chapel belonging to the particular denomination
immediately outside, having a convenient access to the triforium from its own galleries. Another encroachment was a fringe manufactory, which
extended westwards along the triforium so as to include Prior Bolton's window, and held its ground for some time after the main arcading of the apse
had been restored. Visitors to the church before the restoration was complete will remember a substantial iron bar which was carried across the
curve, above the altar, to strengthen the walls—an eyesore which could not be removed till the intruding factory was bought out (vide infra).

The real work of restoration was begun in 1863 by the late Rev. John Abbiss, then Rector of the parish, who raised something like £5,000, and

spent it in reducing the floor to its original level, removing the pews (which had previously been lowered), repairing the walls and piers, and rebuilding
the central part of the apse, which had been pulled down early in the fifteenth century, as already explained.

Outside the church a dry area was formed for the better protection of the fabric against the subsidence known to follow on the ignorance, or

indifference, of early builders as to underlying strata. All this was accomplished in three years, when the money was exhausted, and a fresh fund had
to be created for the continuation of the restorative work. In raising subscriptions the then patron of the living, the Rev. F. P. Phillips, was well
supported by the parishioners, the City Companies, the Charity Commissioners (out of the City Ecclesiastical Funds), and the general public, with
the result that a sum of over £28,000 was got together. The chief individual contributor was the patron himself, who purchased the projecting fringe

factory for £6,500,[17] and completed the restoration of the apse at his own expense. At the same time the church was provided with a new roof,
and the blacksmith's forge, which occupied the site of the north transept, was bought out. On the 30th November, 1886, the restored portions were
formally opened, the actual work having started about two years before, under the active interest of the Rev. William Panckridge, who succeeded
Mr. Abbiss in the Rectory.

The long list of works undertaken and completed from 1887 to 1893, under the succeeding Rector, the Rev. Sir J. Borradaile Savory, Bart.,

includes the restoration of both transepts, the opening out of both sides of the choir triforium,[18] the erection of the north and west porches, the
refacing of the west front, the reparation of the brick tower, and the re-hanging of the bells, besides numerous external and internal details.

The crowning work was the reconstruction of the Lady Chapel, which was not completed till 1896, after the tedious business of releasing it from

its secular holders, and the recovery of the original design amidst the mutilation in which they left it. The whole has been admirably carried through by
Sir Aston Webb, R.A., who has restored the precious fabric as nearly as possible to its original state, by replacing what was destroyed, and
revealing what was concealed when the difficult task was committed to him.

The restoration has since been extended to three bays on the eastern side of the cloister, all that remained of the original quadrangle, and these in a

sadly ruinous state. Whether the cloisters were completed by Rahere is a matter of conjecture; but it may be fairly assumed that they were begun by
him as a necessary part of the monastery. The surviving Norman fragments point to the twelfth century as the date of their first erection. It is certain
that they were rebuilt in the fifteenth, for besides the architectural remains of that period, there is historical evidence that the work was done under
Prior John Watford soon after his appointment in 1404. For in September, 1409, Pope Alexander V, when making a grant of Indulgences to those
who visited and gave alms at the church on Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday, and the Feast of the Assumption, expressly mentions
the reconstruction of the Cloisters and Chapter House by the Prior among the reasons which had induced him to confer the privilege.

When the monastery was suppressed, the archway leading into the east cloister from the church was built up, and the doors were taken from it—

in all probability to be transferred (in 1544) to the principal entrance at the western end of the truncated building.

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In the reconstruction attempted by the Dominican Friars, it seems that, instead of re-opening the cloister-arch to its full extent, they contented

themselves with inserting a smaller doorway within it, the jambs and lintel of which were discovered in the rubble masonry when the arch was
opened out in 1905. On the suppression of the Dominicans by Queen Elizabeth, the cloisters passed again into secular hands, and disappear from
history until the year 1742, when there is a record of the stabling that occupied the ruins till our own day, with the temporary interruption of a fire in
1830, which brought most of the eastern side to the ground. The stables were afterwards rebuilt, and left undisturbed till 1900, when negotiations
were opened for the purchase of the freehold from the owners.

It was not till Michaelmas, 1904, that possession, even of a part, could be obtained, as there were various leasehold interests to be reckoned

with, and many beneficiaries to be satisfied, whose rights will not be finally extinguished until June, 1926. But excavation was at once commenced,
and the actual rebuilding in 1905. It need hardly be said that all that has been discovered of the ancient work, here and elsewhere, whether above or
below ground, has been carefully preserved, and incorporated (as far as possible in situ) into the restoration.

Footnotes

I. "Liber fundationis ecclesiae et prioratus S. Bartholomaei in West-Smithfield, London; per Raherum qui illic religiosos viros
secundum regulam S. patris Augustini aggregavit, iisdemque per XXII annos prioris dignitate et officio functus praetuit, et de
miraculis ipsius."

II. "Idem liber Anglice."

Both are on parchment, in pages of the same (quarto) size, and bound together in a single volume of eighty-three leaves,
divided almost equally between the Latin and English versions.—Cottonian MSS. Vespasian, B. ix.

"When he attained the flower of youth, he began to haunt the households of noblemen and the palaces of princes, where,
under every elbow of them, he spread their cushions, with apings and flatterings delectably anointing their eyes, to draw to
him their friendships. And yet he was not content with this, but haunted the King's palace, and among the noisefull press of
that tumultuous Court enforced himself with jollity and carnal suavity, by the which he might draw to him the hearts of many
a one."—Cottonian MS., ut supra.

Cottonian MS.

Ibid.

This Richard de Belmeis (Beauvais) was the first of two bishops of the same name, and held the See of London for twenty
years (1108-1128).

The name of Rahere, which appears in various forms, suggests a French origin; and from the fact that it occurs in the
signature, or attestation, of certain documents discovered in Brittany, as well as from the close relations between the bishop
and the founder of St. Bartholomew's, it is conjectured that they both came from the same neighbourhood. Otherwise their
joint interest in the foundation at Smithfield is sufficiently accounted for by the benevolent object and the situation within the
London diocese.

Leland gives the credit of the foundation to Henry I, as having granted the land out of the royal domain.

The Canons Regular of St. Augustine (of Hippo) are said to have been founded at Avignon in or about 1061. Their first
establishment in England was at Colchester (circa 1105), where the picturesque ruins of the Priory Church, dedicated to St.
Botolph, are all that remain of the monastic buildings. The habit consisted of a black cassock with a white rochet, over which
a black cloak and hood were worn, thus leading to their familiar name of the Black Canons—not to be confused with the
Black Friars, a Dominican Order of mendicants, introduced at St. Bartholomew's Priory under Queen Mary. From an
anecdote related by Matthew Paris (under the year 1250), and quoted in most accounts of the Priory, it seems that the
inmates, while recognizing the authority of the Bishop of London, were extremely jealous of outside interference. The
Archbishop of Canterbury (Boniface of Savoy) had ventured to include St. Bartholomew's in one of his visitations. He was
received with becoming dignity by the sub-prior, but politely warned against going beyond his jurisdiction. This so enraged
his Grace that he struck the sub-prior in the face, and, "with many oaths," rent in pieces the rich cope he was wearing,
treading it under his feet, and thrusting the sub-prior against a pillar of the chancel with such violence as almost to kill him. A
general conflict followed between the Canons and the Archbishop's attendants, which was taken up outside and set the whole
city in an uproar.

Vide Dr. Norman Moore's edition from the copy in the Record Office.

There had been a decline in public interest for some years before 1691, when the abuses which had grown round the
celebration led to its reduction from fourteen to four days: but the fair lingered on in a degenerate state till it was last
proclaimed by the Lord Mayor in 1850, and finally ceased in 1855. The live cattle market, so vividly described, with its
attendant nuisances, in the twenty-first chapter of "Oliver Twist," was closed at the same time, and the business transferred
to the new Caledonian Market. The open pens at Smithfield have been superseded by covered buildings, to which the old
Newgate Market has been removed, and considerably developed, for the sale of meat, the slaughtering for the most part being
done locally in the various places whence the supplies are derived.

The memory of old associations is preserved in the street which runs along the north side of the church, and still bears the
name of "Cloth Fair": and the site of "Pye Corner," where the great fire of 1666 reached its limit, is marked by a tablet in the
wall, at the entrance to Cock Lane in Giltspur Street, a short distance to the south-west. The place took its name from the
"Court of Pie-Powder," which was held during the fair here, as at similar gatherings throughout the country, to deal
expeditiously with disturbers of the peace. The etymology is traced to the old French pied pouldré, with supposed reference
to the dusty feet of pedlars and others who came before the court—now extinguished in the more modern Petty Sessions.

A lively description of the fair, in its palmy days, is given in a tract, printed in 1641 for Richard Harper at the "Bible and Harp"
in Smithfield, entitled, "Bartholomew Fair, or varieties of fancies, where you may find a faire of wares, and all to please your
mind, with the several enormityes and misdemeanours which are there seen and heard."

Among the more gloomy associations of Smithfield are the martyrdoms which took place there during the Marian persecution
of 1555-57. Of the victims, John Rogers, John Bradford, and John Philpot are commemorated in a modern tablet let into the
wall of the hospital facing the square where they suffered. The church to their memory, referred to in the inscription, is in St.
John Street Road, where it was built as a Chapel-of-Ease to the parish church of St. John-of-Jerusalem, founded by the
Knights Hospitallers in 1185.

The late Mr. J. H. Parker was inclined to think there was a tower in each corner (though two only could be represented in the
seal), as was not unusual in France and elsewhere, but rarely the case in England. (See his lecture delivered in the church on
13th July, 1863.)

Vide "Henry VIII and the English Monasteries," by the Rt. Rev. Abbot Gasquet, D.D., O.S.B., for an able statement of the
case for the communities: and an article by G. G. Perry ("Eng. Hist. Review," April, 1889), on "Episcopal Visitations of the
Austin Canons," for some cases of laxity.

The Dominicans were introduced at St. Bartholomew's in 1556, when their old monastery (dating from 1276), near the north
end of Blackfriars Bridge, was no longer available. Possibly their work and reputation in making converts may have had some
influence on the choice of the Order, which, moreover, was governed by the Augustinian rule, adopted (with additions) by
their founder in 1215, and so far brought the community under the traditions of their predecessors. The members at
Smithfield consisted of English, Spanish, and Belgian friars, and Fr. William Perrin, O.P., was appointed as their chief. When
he died in 1558, Fr. Richard Hargrave was elected in his place, but was not allowed to take office, apparently in view of the
suppression which was impending when the Letters Patent from the General, confirming his election, reached England in the

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following year. By the time of the actual expulsion (13th July, 1559) the community had been reduced by deaths and
migrations to "three priests and one young man," who would seem to have conformed, in preference to leaving the country.
(Vide "The Elizabethan Religious Settlement," ch. iv, by Dom H. N. Birt, O.S.B.)

For the general history of the Black Friars the reader is referred to Archbishop Alemany's "Life of St. Dominic, with a Sketch
of the Dominican Order," the "Etudes sur l'Ordre de St. Dominique" by D'Anzas, and "The Coming of the Friars" by Dr. Aug.
Jessopp. The "Chronica Majora" of Matthew Paris afford some lively reading on the subject.

It is possible that investigations now pending may involve a slight rearrangement of this conjectural plan, as those previously
drawn have similarly been modified from time to time by fresh discoveries.

This suggestion of Bishop Grindal's recalls the case of Beaulieu Abbey where the beautiful refectory is still preserved as the
parish church.

The church had been "restored" in 1789 by Mr. George Dance, architect to the hospital, in a spirit which may be inferred
from the description of the interior given above. A more sympathetic restoration was inaugurated by Mr. Philip Hardwick in
1823.

When the church was repaired by Mr. John Blyth in 1836, this painting was removed, and a range of columns, bearing small
semicircular arches, substituted for it as a reredos. During these alterations it was discovered that the stone wall (erected by
de Walden) between the wooden altar-piece and the original apse, was painted in bright red tempera, sprinkled with black
stars.

The above-mentioned letters are attributed to Mr. John Carter, but are merely signed by "An Architect."

It would probably be unfair to infer any unusual neglect in spiritual matters from the architectural conditions. In Paterson's
"Pietas Londinensis" there is a list of public services at many London churches, as held in the early part of the eighteenth
century. The services at St. Bartholomew-the-Great are there quoted as "Daily in the last week in the month at 11 a.m. and 5
p.m.," and at St. Bartholomew-the-Less as "Daily at 11 a.m."

It should be stated that the fringe factory had covered the remains of the crypt and Lady Chapel, besides projecting some
twenty feet into the east end of the church. The architects for these earlier restorations were Professor Hayter Lewis and Mr.
Slater, who deserve credit for their careful preservation of the old work.

The obstruction on the south side of the triforium has been already mentioned. The northern side was used for the parochial
boys' school for many years down to 1892, when the scholars were transferred to the new schools built for them adjoining
the church.

THE PRIORY CHURCH FROM THE WEST

VIEW FROM THE WEST

From a print of 1810

CHAPTER II

THE EXTERIOR

The church lies in a general east and west direction, and, at the present day, consists of the Choir and encircling Ambulatory, Lady Chapel, north

and south Transepts, with the lower stage of the central Tower, one bay of the ancient Nave, three bays of the Cloister, and a seventeenth-century
brick Tower—the whole hidden behind the houses, in an obscure corner of West Smithfield, by no means easy for a stranger to discover. It will be
well for him, therefore, in the first place, to make his way to the better known buildings of St. Bartholomew's Hospital, and then walk across the
open square, between them and Smithfield Market, to its eastern side, where he will find the entrance close to the narrow street cal...